Rising medical costs and a rapidly growing elderly population have combined to require improved home assisted health care. While the elderly make up just 12% of the nation's population, they consume 30% of all prescription drugs (Santo-Novak, p. 72). Compliance errors account for 23% of nursing home admissions as well as 125,000 deaths a year from the misuse of cardiovascular drugs (Karden, pp. 65-66). Over 6.5 million of the elderly need some form of longterm care and 5.2 million of these patients are living semi-independently in the community. These patients, the target population, must rely primarily on family and friends for assistance with medication even though at least 51% of these caregivers work full or part time (AARP, p.8). The objective of Phase I funding was to evaluate a specific design concept for a fully automated home tablet and capsule dispenser in terms of consumer utility and engineering feasibility. Phase II objectives are to manufacture 20 prototypes, to test them with 100 semi-independent elderly patients for medication compliance improvements, and to make necessary modifications for high-volume Phase III production. The Phase I design 1) handles up to 6 different medications simultaneously: 2) eliminates pill counting; 3) requires no programming; 4) requires no patient visual acuity; 5) delivers medication on an automated tray; 6) prevents overdosing. It also provides complete logging, is secured against theft, and is fully portable, allowing for patient use during overnight or weekend visit.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Type
Small Business Innovation Research Grants (SBIR) - Phase II (R44)
Project #
2R44AG008608-02A1
Application #
3505851
Study Section
Nursing Research Study Section (NURS)
Project Start
1990-05-01
Project End
1994-08-31
Budget Start
1992-09-21
Budget End
1993-08-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
1992
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Checkmate Engineering
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Lewisville
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
75057